The Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget released the September jobless figures Wednesday. The nation's September unemployment rate was 7.8 percent, down from 8.1 percent in August.

The state's jobless has fallen 0.9 percentage points over 12 months from a September 2011 level of 10.2 percent. The rate rose in four straight months from April's 8.3 percent to August's 9.4 percent.

Michigan says total employment in the state rose by a seasonally adjusted 11,000 in September to 4.23 million. It says the civilian labor force rose by 7,000 in the latest month and by 18,000 in the past year.